Honourific Suffixes

[Dr_Sufi]

Re: Honourific Suffixes

@Mezhgan

Many cultures have honourific suffixes used when addressing or referring to people. These are words which are usually attached to the ends of names, which may be either casual or formal and can denote a variety of things, such as respect or endearment.

An example of an honorific suffix in my culture is the word jaan. When speaking to people we often attach the word jaan after someone’s name as term of endearment (i.e. “Mezhgan jaan”), which literally translates to “life” or “soul” in Dari. Although the literal meaning of jaan is “life” and comes across as rather intimate, the connotation is closer dear, sweet, or darling, depending on who is saying it and to whom and can be used for both men and women.

I was curious, are there any honourifics in Pakistani culture?

Regards to All.

Coming back after about six months.

In Pakistan too, we use a lot of honourific suffixes / prefixes. The same suffix ‘Jaan’ in Urdu is widely used in Pakistan as well. Moreover, its Punjabi counterpart ‘Jee’ is also used as a sign of love and respect. In Urdu, it has the same meaning as in Persian or Darri i.e. ‘Life / Soul’. In Punjabi, it is used in a broader sense and means ‘Life / Soul / Heart / Person / Individual’ etc. In the fllowing are given some examples;

Father; Abbu Jaan (Urdu) and Abba Jee (Punjabi)
Mother; Ammi Jaan (Urdu) and Ammi Jee or Maan Jee (Punjabi)
Elder Brother; Bhai Jaan (Urdu) and Bha Jee (Punjabi)
Elder Sister; Aapa Jan (Urdu) and Aapan Jee (Punjabi)

In the same way, both hese beautiful languages have a different word for every relation and is suffixed with ‘Jaan or Jee’. Some relations without these suffixes are given here;

Paternal Grand Parents; Dada and his wife Dadi (Both Urdu & Punjabi)
Maternal Grand Parents; Nana and and his wife Nani (Both)
Father’s Elder Brother; Taya and his wife Tayee (Both)
Father’s Youger Brother; Chacha and his wife Chachi (Urdu) and Chaachaa and his wife Chaachee (Punjabi)
Father’s Sister; Phupho or Phuphi and her husband Phupha (Both)
Mother’s Brother; Mamu and his wife Mami (Urdu) and Mamaa and his wife Mamee (Punjabi)
Mother’s Sister; Khala and her husband Khalu (Both)

And the list goes on and on…